“This is a way to solve a lack of control problem” says Commission Chair Floyd

• County Commission also approves big bids for new SUV, trucks and more
• Surplus equipment from 911 going to Paulding, courtroom projector headed to Haralson

A longstanding problem of items that aren’t supposed to be flushed down the toilets of the Polk County Jail is finally getting a mechanical solution when the other various solutions have so far failed.

Commissioners approved $400,000 in spending for a new grinder system to be installed at the Polk County Jail that will catch outgoing wastewater and anything within the pipes that shouldn’t be there and turn it into a slurry that can safely be flushed away into the City of Cedartown’s wastewater treatment facility.

The cost is hopefully a final one brought before the County Commission during their Tuesday session, since other efforts have failed.

WATCH: Polk County Commission Regular Session from February

Forcing inmates to turn in used items for new one – everything from toothbrushes to t-shirts – failed to yield the results of keeping the sewers free of the odd items that began being collected (and returned in comical fashion in buckets) to the county from the Wastewater Treatment plant in years past.

Most recently the county tried installing what is essentially a big septic tank, which catches the wastewater and allows anything too large to get through grates to be captured and cleaned out. The weekly bill is nearly $1,000 to pump the tank, one the county would like to have off its balance sheet as soon as possible.

Engineering, parts and installation are covered in the $400,000 cost.

“This sounds like a lot, but it going to save us a lot of money in the long run because there’s incredibleness going on out there,” Commission Gary Martin explained when the vote came up.

Before wrapping up the vote during Tuesday’s meeting, Commission Chair Hal Floyd added that “is it necessary for the quote-unquote lack of control problem?”

American Rescue Plan Act funds provided to Polk County are going toward the cost of the new grinder system.

Jail officials have noted to the County Commission for the past several years that this has been an ongoing problem that needed this solution in particular due to increases in the population at the jail over time, and understaffing that prevents them from being able to watch all inmates at all hours of the day.

Additional spending measures were also on the Tuesday, February 7 agenda that received unanimous approval.

Bids for new vehicles from both Hardy Family Ford and Peach State Ford – totaling up to $218,576.56 combined – included a 2023 Ford Explorer from Hardy, and five F-150 pickups of various sizes from Peach State Ford.

Commissioners did question the timeline of when the vehicles would be delivered, citing problems in the past. A 90-day delivery clause is in the approved bids for the trucks and SUV to arrive.

Law enforcement also got new LPR systems for a couple of cars. The mobile camera systems came in a $37,350 and for a pair, and will allow two officers within the Polk County Police to have access to tag reader systems on their cars. Though one is going on a Dodge Charger (which the PCPD hopes will be out of rotation in the next 18 months and replaced by a new vehicle) the mounts will be able to be purchased for a replacement used for just $300.

911 is also getting some new equipment, and getting rid of some old during their latest meeting. Commissioners approved spending of $174,459.13 in a bid from RPSS to provide upgrades to the 911 center’s phone system.

They also got rid of some equipment in the process, providing two racks of equipment meant to be used in the county’s old radio system. The surplus equipment is being donated to Paulding County until they can complete their own system upgrades.

An additional $13,580.77 was spent out of the 2020 SPLOST for a Technology project requested by the IT Department. Officials approved the spending for new equipment to go to Diltex, Inc.

One more tech item now off the county’s inventory: an Epson PowerLite 4650 projector used in the Polk County Courthouse. Judge Mark Murphy sought the surplus of the item, which is being donated to Haralson County for use in their courtrooms in the Tallapoosa Circuit Superior Court.